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Vietnam: Steel industry to maintain growth over 20% in 2018
The Hanoitimes – The steel industry will continue on its high growth trajectory (20-22% this year) thanks to rising market demand, predicted Vice Chairman of Vietnam Steel Association (VSA) Nguyen Van Sua.
The strongest growth will be seen in the production of hot-rolled steel with 154%, followed by welded steel pipe (15%), colored galvanized steel (12%), construction steel (10%), and cold-rolled steel (5%).
A good number of projects are in the pipeline in 2018, like Hoa Phat Group’s steel project in QuangNgai province with a capacity of 2 million tons per year, Hoa Sen Group’s cold-rolled steel production line in BinhDinh province (350,000 tons per year), and the three construction steel projects of Pomina, Vietnam-Italia, and Tung Ho, which can produce over 1.8 million tons a year.
Therefore, the volume of steel products will skyrocket during the year. The production of iron is expected to rise by 75% against 2017 to 7,500 tons, while steel billets will soar by 14% to 14,000 tons.
Sua said VSA would proactively participate in developing national standards for steel products and technical barriers as well as promote the application of trade defense instruments to protect the domestic industry amidst rapid international integration.
The association will work with the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)’s Vietnam Competition Authority and local steel firms to closely monitor steel product transactions related to trade defense.
Also, predicting that Vietnam would continue to be a fast-growing market for steel this year, Nghiem Xuan Da, chairman of Vietnam Steel Corporation, suggested that the government should increase the promotion of investment and international co-operation and stimulate steel consumption demand by incentivizing developing industries, such as construction, ship building, and mechanics.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade has so far also affirmed that Vietnam will continuously apply trade remedies in accordance with the World Trade Organization’s rules and its commitments under its free trade agreements to protect domestic steel producers against imported products in 2018.
The ministry said that it will also take steps to prevent fraud in the use of rolled steel in the domestic construction industry, as some investors and developers are using the product but declaring otherwise to evade taxes.
In addition to these, the association would keep a close watch on imported products that local producers can manufacture, and propose measures to promote domestic production.
The association’s statistics revealed that steel output reached more than 22 million tons in 2017, a year-on-year increase of 23.5 per cent, with a sold volume of nearly 19 million tons, up 20.7 per cent.
The industry recorded an export revenue of more than US$3.64 billion, up 45.4 per cent against 2016.
Vietnam imported nearly 20 million tons of steel in 2017, worth $10.5 billion, a drop of 14.2 per cent in volume but a rise of 13.2 per cent in value.
Therefore, the volume of steel products will skyrocket during the year. The production of iron is expected to rise by 75% against 2017 to 7,500 tons, while steel billets will soar by 14% to 14,000 tons.
Sua said VSA would proactively participate in developing national standards for steel products and technical barriers as well as promote the application of trade defense instruments to protect the domestic industry amidst rapid international integration.
The association will work with the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)’s Vietnam Competition Authority and local steel firms to closely monitor steel product transactions related to trade defense.
Also, predicting that Vietnam would continue to be a fast-growing market for steel this year, Nghiem Xuan Da, chairman of Vietnam Steel Corporation, suggested that the government should increase the promotion of investment and international co-operation and stimulate steel consumption demand by incentivizing developing industries, such as construction, ship building, and mechanics.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade has so far also affirmed that Vietnam will continuously apply trade remedies in accordance with the World Trade Organization’s rules and its commitments under its free trade agreements to protect domestic steel producers against imported products in 2018.
The ministry said that it will also take steps to prevent fraud in the use of rolled steel in the domestic construction industry, as some investors and developers are using the product but declaring otherwise to evade taxes.
In addition to these, the association would keep a close watch on imported products that local producers can manufacture, and propose measures to promote domestic production.
The association’s statistics revealed that steel output reached more than 22 million tons in 2017, a year-on-year increase of 23.5 per cent, with a sold volume of nearly 19 million tons, up 20.7 per cent.
The industry recorded an export revenue of more than US$3.64 billion, up 45.4 per cent against 2016.
Vietnam imported nearly 20 million tons of steel in 2017, worth $10.5 billion, a drop of 14.2 per cent in volume but a rise of 13.2 per cent in value.
Source: http://www.hanoitimes.vn/economy/2018/01/81E0C113/steel-industry-to-maintain-growth-over-20-in-2018/